Basic Information
Scientific classification
- Chinese name: Sumatran Green Woodpecker
- Scientific name: Picus canus dedemi, Picus dedemi, Sumatran woodpecker
- Classification: Climbing birds
- Classification: Order Versiformes, Family Woodpeckers, Genus *Leptochloa*
Vital signs data
- Body length: 26-33 cm
- Weight: No verification information available.
- Lifespan: No verification data available.
Significant features
Distribution and Habitat
It is distributed in the Sumatran highlands.
It mainly inhabits low mountain broad-leaved forests and mixed forests, and also appears in secondary forests and forest edges, but rarely in primary coniferous forests. In autumn and winter, it often appears in sparse forests along roadsides and farmland edges, and also frequently ventures into small woodlands near villages.
Appearance
Body length 26-33 cm. Male: Gray at the base of the forehead, mixed with black; forehead and crown vermilion; back of the crown, nape, and hindneck gray or dark gray, mixed with black shaft streaks. Lores black; supercilium gray-white. Ear coverts and sides of the neck gray; malar stripe black, broad and distinct. Back and wing coverts olive-green; rump and upper tail coverts greenish-yellow; central tail feathers olive-brown, with grayish-white semicircular spots on both sides, black tips, and glossy black shafts; outer tail feathers blackish-brown with dark horizontal bars; primary flight feathers black with white square horizontal bars on the outer side and white horizontal bars at the base on the inner side; secondary flight feathers tinged with olive-yellow on the outer side, with indistinct white spots. Underparts: chin, throat, and foreneck grayish-white; breast, abdomen, and flanks grayish-green; undertail coverts also grayish-green, with grass-green tips. Female: Dark gray from the forehead to the crown, with black shaft streaks and tips, otherwise the same as the male. Iris red; bill grayish-black; legs and toes grayish-green or brownish-green.
Detailed introduction
The Sumatran Green Woodpecker, scientifically known as *Picus canus dedemi* or *Picus dedemi*, and by foreign name Sumatran woodpecker, was until recently considered a regional variant of the Grey-headed Green Woodpecker.
The Sumatran Green Woodpecker is usually found alone or in pairs, rarely in flocks. In autumn and winter, it is commonly seen along roadsides, in sparse woodlands near farmland, and also in small groves near villages. It flies swiftly, moving in a wave-like pattern. It forages primarily on the lower and middle parts of tree trunks, but also frequently on the ground, especially on fallen logs and anthills. Its diet consists mainly of ants, bark beetles, longhorn beetle larvae, and insects from the Lepidoptera, Coleoptera, and Hymenoptera orders. When foraging, it often spirals up the base of tree trunks, then flies to the base of another tree to continue its search. It can use its long tongue to hook out pests that are under the bark or have burrowed into the wood. Occasionally, it also eats plant fruits and seeds, such as wild grapes, red pine nuts, yellow pine cones, and grass seeds.
The breeding season for the Sumatran Green Woodpecker is from April to June. They nest in tree cavities. The nest is jointly dug by both parents, with a new cavity dug each year. Old nests are generally not reused. Nests are typically chosen in mixed forests, broad-leaved forests, secondary forests, or forest edges on decaying broad-leaved trees such as ash, aspen, chokecherry, oak, and elm. The nest is 7-11 meters above the ground, with a round or oval entrance, and no lining inside. They breed once a year, laying 8-11 eggs per clutch. The eggs are milky white, smooth, and oval in shape. Incubation is shared by both parents, lasting 12-13 days. The chicks are altricial, and both parents participate in raising them. After approximately 23-24 days of feeding, the chicks are ready to fly and leave the nest.
Listed as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2012 ver 3.1.
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